Thinking God’s Thoughts

Alfred North Whitehead explained, “There can be no living science unless there is a widespread instinctive conviction in the existence of an Order of Things. And, in particular, of an Order of Nature.” Whitehead argued that confidence in this proposition was especially inspired by the “medieval insistence upon the rationality of God.” 4 Other historians of science have amplified Whitehead’s observation. They have insisted that modern science was specifically inspired by the conviction that the universe is the product of a rational mind who designed the universe to be understood and the human mind to understand it. As sociologist of science Steve Fuller notes, Western science is grounded in “the belief that the natural order is the product of a single intelligence from which our own intelligence descends.” 5 This foundational assumption gave rise to the idea that nature was “intelligible,” that it had been designed in accord with discernable laws that could be understood by those who subjected nature to careful scrutiny. Or as the astronomer Johannes Kepler said, scientists have the job of “thinking God’s thoughts after him.”

The Signature in the Cell

Stephen C. Meyer

A fascinating book on the history of origin of life research. He also explains the unfathomable complexity of information usage inside the cell.

Despite its heady topic, it is a clear and winsome read with many personal stories. Highly recommended